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Much of the wild Florida Keys coastline is mangrove jungle or reef rock, but sand and shell beaches do occur in places. Where they aren’t developed, these wave-molded, tidally influenced ecosystems tend to be bustling frontiers for both terrestrial and marine creatures. Kayakers and hikers might glimpse anything from a skittering crab to a massive, crook-jawed crocodile on Keys beaches.

Black Skimmer

While it superficially resembles a giant tern, the black skimmer is hard to mistake for any other bird: Its dramatically elongated beak, banded red and black, has a longer lower bill than upper one, unique among American birds. Watching a skimmer fishing, the purpose of the apparatus becomes clear. The birds fly low over the water – they are graceful and precise on the wing – with their lower bill under the surface, ready to snatch up small fish or crustaceans at first touch. Resident in Florida and adjoining portions of the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, black skimmers will scrape out nests on sandy beaches – a habit shared by certain other local seabirds, including terns and brown noddies – and will even rest, dog-like, with their heads stretched out on the ground.

Great Land Crab

A number of species of terrestrial crabs are native to Florida, including the land hermit and ghost crabs. Mightiest of all is the great land crab, which inhabits the Keys and South Florida as well as other corners of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. A large individual might sport a 6-inch carapace and weigh a pound. Living in sodden underground burrows, these plant-eating crabs are mostly land-based, but females must release their eggs in saltwater, a process usually conducted around the full moon between June and December. In the Caribbean, great land crabs are a cherished delicacy.

American Crocodile

Among the more dramatic creatures residing along the coast of the Florida Keys is the American crocodile – paler, toothier and more marine than Florida’s numerous alligators – which achieves its northernmost distribution in South Florida. Crocs breed in the Keys, particularly in Florida Bay (including along the mangrove coast of Everglades National Park) and Key Largo. Once nearly extinct in the US, several thousand now roam here. Exceptional crocs can exceed 16 feet in length, but these impressive saurians – apex predators in the Keys – avoid people as a rule. Primarily on the move at night, they cruise mangrove swamps, estuaries and near-shore saltwater, hunting fish, waterbirds and other prey. While kayakers might spot crocs hauled out on beaches or poised amid mangroves nearly anywhere in the Upper Keys, Biscayne National Park at the north end is a good bet.

Mole Skink

The Florida Keys mole skink represents the opposite end of the reptile size spectrum from the American crocodile: These diminutive, slender lizards max out at around 5 inches in length. Endemic to the Keys, they range from Key Largo to the Dry Tortugas, and prowl beach wrack for spiders, crickets and other invertebrates. Because of their small natural range, mole skinks are classified as a State Species of Special Concern by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Sea Turtles

Beaches in the Florida Keys, as well as those of mainland Florida, are precious nesting sites for a number of sea turtle species. Loggerhead, green, hawksbill, leatherback and Kemp’s ridley turtles all utilize the Keys, sometimes spotted by snorkelers and divers as they patrol the coral reefs, or seen by boaters lazing at the surface. The most important nesting grounds in the Florida Keys are the islands of Dry Tortugas National Park. Nesting habitat is strictly protected; never disturb any turtle you encounter on the beach.

Common Raccoon

Unlike the Florida Keys mole skink – or the Lower Keys marsh rabbit and Key deer – the common raccoon is not restricted to the Florida Keys, but is rather a hugely widespread omnivore, found coast to coast in North America, which finds happy hunting and foraging grounds here. Intelligent and dexterous, raccoons commonly roam Keys beaches, along with mangrove swamps and tropical hardwood hammocks, snatching anything they can for food: lizards, turtle and bird eggs, rodents, crabs, fruits and many other kinds of tidbits.

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About the Author

Ethan Shaw is a writer and naturalist living in Oregon. He has written extensively on outdoor recreation, ecology and earth science for outlets such as Backpacker Magazine, the Bureau of Land Management and Atlas Obscura. Shaw holds a Bachelor of Science in wildlife ecology and a graduate certificate in geographic information systems from the University of Wisconsin.

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